This invention relates to a toy ball.
Balls are typically spherical. Some balls are made to bounce while others are not. The spherical shape provides a regularity that is useful for certain types of play. However, the shape and the fact that these balls define a closed interior limits the types of play possible with the ball, as well as the appearance of the ball.
It is therefore the object of this invention to provide a ball comprising of plurality of interwoven loops to achieve a ball with a hollow interior, an interesting, complex surface shape, texture and appearance, and myriad possibilities for the functionality of the ball created by the shape of the loops and the materials from which the loops are made.
This invention features a ball comprising a plurality of interwoven loops, to achieve a ball with a hollow interior. The loops may have a generally polygonal shape. The loops may be generally pentagonal. The ball may comprise six generally pentagonal loops that are interwoven so that they lie generally along the planes of an icosidodecahedron solid. The loops may have protruding portions at one or more of the vertices. In one embodiment, the loops each have a protruding portion at each vertex. The protruding portions may be generally partially spherical. At least some of the loops preferably define butting ends that lie proximate one another within a connector means that may comprise a two-piece shell that fits over the butt ends, and is fixed thereto with adhesive.
The loops can be of any shape. In the embodiment with polygonal loops, the loops may have three, four, five or six sides, or more.